In a couple of month’s time about 5,000MW of power is expected to be added to generation capacity from completed National Integrated Power Projects (NIPP), owned by the federal government and the 36 states of the federation, President Goodluck Jonathan has said.
The President stated this in Geregu, Kogi State, yesterday, while commissioning the completed 434MW Geregu 11 power station which was built by Siemens Limited and managed by the Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC).
The Geregu 11 plant which was the last of the NIPPs to be awarded consists of three gas turbines and was awarded to Siemens in March 2010 on a turnaround key basis with a completion time of 27 months becomes the first to be commissioned.
According to Jonathan, the event marks another landmark in the quest for stable power supply, adding: “In the months ahead, I will be commissioning a number of other equally significant completed NIPP power plants which will add close to 5,000MW to our generation capacity. Today’s event therefore goes beyond the symbolic commissioning of a power plant.
“It is gratifying especially against the background of the fact that the NIPP projects were stalled for about two years following the dispute between the federal government and the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Responsibility Commission (RMAFRC) over deductions from the excess crude account. That shows how strong our institutions are, a parastatal of the federal government took the federal government to court so the whole projects were stalled.”
He further mentioned that apart from the delay occasioned by the law suit, the project was also faced with other challenges such as access roads for transportation of turbines to site, extremely high compensation for land acquisition and gas supply.
He commended the unwavering support of the 36 States governors and the management of the NDPHC which have made the NIPP projects possible, stating that “our dream as a nation of one day having stable power is becoming a reality.”
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